Thunder in the Mountains

The Havaco Story

Many long years have passed since two major
mine explosions rocked the small community of Havaco, West Virginia. Havaco,
formerly known as Jed, lying on Tug Fork of the Big Sandy River in McDowell
County, would never be the same.

1912 JED MINE EXPLOSION

On the morning of March 26, 1912, the Jed Coal and Coke Company
mine at Jed, West Virginia, exploded killing eighty miners. The mine employed
about one hundred underground miners on each shift. Reports indicated
the flame from an open light, commonly used by all miners at that time,
ignited methane gas in the mine which in turn ignited coal dust that had
accumulated during mining. In the blink of an eye, another mine disaster
had occurred. Some of the eighty were killed by asphyxiation, many others
died from heat and flame. On the outside the blast was not as destructive
as others had been, but on the inside the effect was devastating. State
mine inspectors and miners from nearby mines arrived on the scene shortly
after the blast and assisted rescue workers in their search for survivors.
That afternoon, after several previous attempts had failed, due to smoke
and heat, a group of rescue workers were finally able to enter the mine.
Great care had to be taken to insure that the rescuers did not become
victims themselves. The force of the blast had blown mine timbers down,
allowing about a foot of slate above the coal to fall. The downed slate
severely hampered the efforts of rescue workers. Crews of men worked around
the clock hanging brattice cloth for ventilation and moving the fallen
slate in an attempt to reach the men, hoping to find survivors. Survivors
were not to be found. Even with the tireless efforts of rescuers, two
days passed before the first bodies were recovered and carried outside.
On the hillside below the mine, at a location known as Little Egypt, several
crews of men were digging graves for their fallen comrades. Coffins, which
were in short supply, were brought in by train along with undertakers
needed to prepare the men for burial. As the men were brought from the
mine, each was identified by family or friends. Some were taken away by
family for private burial. Most were placed in a coffin and buried nearby
at the newly prepared cemetery. On March 29, 1912, the last bodies were
brought from the mine. The blast at Jed created a list of casualties far
exceeding any suffered in the upper Tug Fork valley.

1946 HAVACO MINE EXPLOSION

On the morning of January 15, 1946 the New River & Pocahontas Coal
Company, No. 9 Mine, Havaco, West Virginia, became the scene of disaster
when the mine exploded killing 15 and injuring 37. The McDowell County mine
explosion amazingly left 200+ underground miners unhurt. Many of the dead
and more severely injured were working at or near the bottom of the mine
shaft and eleven of the injured men were working at the tipple. Casualties
could have been much worse if the explosion had taken an underground course
like the Jed explosion, but luckily for many, most of the force was directed
outside of the mine. The fact that 215 miners escaped death during this
devastating event is a miracle. The majority of men underground at the time
of the blast were working a mile or so from the main shaft. With all other
avenues of escape blocked or destroyed the miners had to climb a 275 foot
escape stairway in the air shaft to freedom. The first survivors walked
out of the mine nearly an hour after the blast. Some of those who came later
were nearly unconscious and had to be carried or dragged. The miners with
more serious injuries had to be transported outside by a hurriedly arranged
cable and bucket assembly. The last body was recovered from the mine at
about 5:00 p. m. The ignition source for the explosion was never officially
determined, but federal and state agencies stated in preliminary reports
that the explosion had been caused by coal dust. There were reports that
during the blast flames jumped three hundred feet into the air and bystanders
were knocked to the ground. The blast destroyed the tipple at the mine and
also smashed doors and shattered windows in many of the houses and other
structures in Havaco. Windows were reportedly broken as far away as Welch,
located almost 2 miles away. Around 550 men were employed at the Havaco
mine, split between two shifts. Of that number all but about 50 worked underground.

The background song on this site is "Havaco"
Performed by Alan "Cathead" Johnston and is just one of the
many fine songs on the McDowell County Project CD. "Muddy Water"
and "The River Ran Black" are also included on the CD. In
addition to Alan, his 3 daughters, Becki Burks, Jessi Shumate, and Stacy
Grubb are featured on the CD with special guest musicians Charlie Davis
and Nathan Lawson.Click the link below to hear samples of some of the
other songs.

If you have photos you would like
to share on these disasters, please let me know.

The days of labor intense mining have long since passed and
given way to mechanized mining, requiring less people. This along with
more stringent federal and state mining laws has insured that mining disasters
of the magnitude mentioned above are not likely to ever happen again.

There are no active mines at Havaco now. The old mine was
sealed and the tipple dismantled years ago. The people in the community
of Havaco are trying to put the tragedies of the past behind them and
move on to the future, keeping only the memories of loved ones lost long
ago.

Victims

Please be still my weary child
...there is no need to cry ......Mortal men may leave this world
...but memories never die.....

Times were hard back then my friend
...
those memories will last .........
Until the tears are shed no more ...
for victims of the past.........

If you have comments or would like to add a link to your
site, please let me know.

and thousands of others who have been injured
or killed while mining a substance known as "Coal"

Visitor
since March 11, 2001

Source Information: Book entitled "They Died In The Darkness" by Lacy A. Dillon,
Ravencliff, West Virginia, The Welch Daily News, Welch, West Virginia, and The
Bluefield Daily Telegraph, Bluefield, West Virginia. Special thanks to the residents
of Havaco, West Virginia, for sharing their memories.